ASPIRING teenage racer James Hammond from Shepshed secured third spot in the recent Formula Academy Scholarship competition last week.

The ambitious youngster is striving to follow in the footsteps of F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton in making the move from kart racing to car racing in 2010.

The Formula Academy Series offers aspiring young drivers the opportunity to compete in a unique level playing field environment where all of the cars are identical and hence the best driver wins!

Series organisers also run a scholarship competition, which provides a prize drive for the driver who shows the most promise in a stringent programme of driving and assessment, which took place at Prestwold in Leicestershire last week.

Against a very competitive field of drivers, some with significantly more experience, Hammond performed extremely well and secured third position overall, just a few points away from the cherished prize drive.

Series director Ken Bowes: “The competition was incredibly tight and James not only showed great speed in the cars but also stood out in terms of character and mental approach.

“He’s only driven a car twice before but he learns very quickly. His plan is to compete in Formula Academy for his first season of car racing after achieving some significant success in karting.

“Given his character and rate of development as a driver, I’m sure he’ll do well in the Series and hopefully go on to a successful career in the sport.”